One of Ben’s and my favorite restaurants in town is Granite City Brewery. From cinnamon rolls as big as our heads, to ultra-refreshing seasonal blueberry brew, we always know we’ll have a great meal and drink whenever we stop by.
One of the items we’ve grown particularly attached to is their Chicken Caesar Chalupa appetizer.
Baked flour tortillas are brushed with Caesar dressing, topped with shredded chicken and mozzarella cheese, then baked. They’re served with an ice-cold Caesar salad and chopped tomatoes for scooping, and are the epitome of refreshing and satisfying. Imagine our horror when we stopped in a few months ago and found out the Chicken Caesar Chalupas had been taken off the menu!? Noooo!
Right then and there Ben and I vowed to recreate the crispy app at home. 3+ months later (…) we finally got around to it, Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos, people. These. babies. ROCK! One of our favorite restaurant recreations ever!
Start by sauteing a couple chicken breasts seasoned with lemon pepper in non-stick spray until cooked all the way through.
Once they’re cool enough to handle, shred the chicken with your fingers or a fork, and set aside.
Next, take a few burrito-sized gluten free tortillas and cut each one into 8 wedges.
Once all the tortillas have been cut into wedges, lay them on foil-lined and non-stick sprayed baking sheets.
Spray the tops with more non-stick spray, then bake at 400 degrees until they’re lightly toasted and just starting to turn golden brown. Tip: You can do this ahead of time! Just let the wedges cool completely before putting them in an air-tight container for a couple days.
Alright, here comes the fun part – piling on the toppings!
First top each wedge with about 1 teaspoon Caesar dressing.
I heart Brianna’s Asiago Caesar, but feel free to use whatever’s your fave.
Next add on a little bit of the cooked & shredded lemon pepper chicken.
Finish with shredded mozzarella cheese.
Put the wedges back into the 400 degree oven for 4-5 minutes, or until the tortillas are golden brown, and the cheese is melted. YUM!!!!
Lay the wedges around crunchy romaine lettuce that’s been cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed with a little more Casesar dressing, then sprinkle chopped, fresh tomatoes around the outside!
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Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos
Description
Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos are irresistible and perfect for scooping up an ice-cold Caesar Salad!
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- non-stick spray
- Lemon pepper seasoning
- 3-4 large tortillas
- Caesar dressing
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped into bite-sized pieces
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray both sides of the chicken breasts with non-stick spray, season with lemon pepper, and saute in a skillet until no longer pink in the middle, about 4-5 minutes a side. Let cool slightly, then shred with a fork or your fingers. Set aside.
- Cut tortillas into 8 wedges each. Line baking sheets with foil, then spray with non-stick spray. Lay down tortillas and spray tops with non-stick spray. Bake for 3-4 minutes, or until wedges are slightly toasted and just starting to turn golden brown.
- Spread about 1 teaspoon of Caesar dressing on each of the toasted tortilla wedges. Top with shredded chicken and mozzarella cheese. Bake for 4-5 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
- Toss romaine lettuce with enough Caesar dressing to coat. Place in the middle of a plate, and surround with baked Caesar chicken wedges. Sprinkle with chopped tomato and serve.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Chicken Caesar Chalupas would be awesome as a starter for a dinner party, or a fun entree for 2 or 3. I hope you’ll give them a try!
Jen 03.15.2012
Thank you for the inspiration! I pinned these because my husband loves caesar salad. Ended up also using this idea to make a Buffalo style version that was equally as good. Used blue cheese dressing and a bit of Frank’s red hot sauce. Also, used whole wheat pitas to make it more of a dinner than appetizer. Will be repeated both your way and the new way. YUM!
Kortney 03.12.2012
Ate at Granite City on Saturday in CR and it was ON THE MENU! Maybe they brought it back!!! It was AMAZING!
Lu 03.10.2012
My boyfriend made this for our dinner last night after I showed him your post. It was fantastic – we will be having this again! :)
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Erin 03.06.2012
I would love to order theses as an appetizer.
Erin 03.06.2012
This is by far my FAV thing to get at GC. Well, it’s a tie between this and their french onion soup. TO DIE FOR! SO glad you posted this recipe!
Loretta Crane 03.06.2012
These sound wonderful and fairly easy to make. I love your site. It has something for everyone!
Gabby 03.06.2012
These look SO good! I have been to Granite City once but trying new restaurants in the area since I’m still new to DSM. I might have to go back to get these – or make them on my own.
I like to recreate Noodle & Company’s Whole Grain Tuscan Linguine because I think it is the BEST! It’s pretty close. :)
Teri 03.06.2012
Love your site! I am an Iowa girl too, born and raised, but live in North Carolina now – where you can’t get a Breaded Pork Tenderloin sandwich! (Even though they have to be a rare treat!) I keep thinking I should open a sandwich shop….. Anyway, I recreated Johnny Carino’s Jalepeno Garlic Tilapia – and it turned out great! Makes me think I ought to be making that again soon! Tilapia sautéed in lemon butter, jalepeno, cream sauce. Served with garlic, spinach, tomatoes and angel hair pasta. Yum!
Michael 03.06.2012
You can still request the Chicken Ceaser Chalupa at Granite City (even though not on the menu).
Mary B 04.25.2012
FYI: They took it off the menu all together and can’t order it anymore :(
katie@newmamamac.blogspot.com 03.06.2012
looks incredible! PS – i voted!
Angie 03.06.2012
OMG I’m drooling! These WILL be on the menu this weekend. Thanks!
Emilie @ Emilie's Enjoyables 03.06.2012
I love your restaurant re-creations :)
Michelle 03.06.2012
Yes! Making this! Yum!
Ashley @ Coffee Cake and Cardio 03.06.2012
I try to recreate Mexican dishes all the time. I feel like Mexican is a no fail choice.
Julie 03.06.2012
Your creativity in the kitchen is so inspiring! This definately looks like something I need to try!!!
Cindy 03.06.2012
These look so unique and fun. Evernoted! Thanks for this post.
Michelle (Better with Berries) 03.06.2012
These look amazing! It’s always a bummer if one of your favorite things gets taken off the menu, but it looks like you made do! This happened to my boyfriend’s favorite sandwich at our favorite restaurant, so I might have to try recreating that sometime!
karenc 03.05.2012
Can’t wait to try these – I think I’ll make enough for our main meal – you have the most delicious ideas!